Player Profile: Ryan Braun

I have 22 cards of Ryan Braun. This one is from 2008 Upper Deck Masterpieces.

Playing career: Outfielder Ryan Braun came up with the Brewers in 2007 and quickly established himself as a star, winning the AL Rookie of the Year award that year and the MVP four years later. In his first six years in the majors he hit .300 five times (hit .285 in 2008), hit 30 HR five times (25 in 2010) and drove in 100 runs five times (97 in 2007). However, after his 2011 MVP win he failed a steroid test, and though he initially was able to blame the test due to irregularities in the way his sample was handled, after the 2012 season he was linked to Biogenesis and accepted a lengthy MLB suspension, which coupled with some injuries has limited him from superstar to merely pretty good.

Where he is now: In 2014 hand and rib injuries limited him to 135 games, and he hit .266 with 19 HR and 81 RBI.

My memories: He seemed like one of the best stars in the majors, and I was rooting for him to be innocent of the original drug test failure. Sadly it has not worked out well for him lately.

Google Autocomplete results: He is second when you type Ryan B, between Ryan Bingham, a singer, and Ryan Boatright, a point guard for the UConn Huskies.

Coming up next: The next profile will be Steve Braun.